Though officials at Fred Meyer declined to comment, a local observer said the chain was "aggressive" in its introduction of the Starbucks brand.

"They had some signage in the store and featured it pretty prominently in their sale circulars," he told SN. "They did a good job of making sure customers knew this was a new product and that it was on sale at a pretty good price. They still have it at about $3.89, which I'm sure is keeping sales strong."

A store-level source at a Seattle-area Fred Meyer said the product, priced at $3.89 when the associate spoke to SN during the last week of April, has been moving well. "It's been on sale and we had signs near it, so that's helped. I think the name recognition of Starbucks is also helping things."

The ice cream line is made by Dreyer's Grand Ice Cream, Oakland, Calif.